Methylation status of genes upregulated by demethylating agent 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine in hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND/AIMS: To determine the clinical significance of gene promoter methylation in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), we examined in clinical samples the methylation status of those promoters that showed elevated activity in hepatoma cell lines after 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine treatment. METHODS: Regarding the genes with promoter hypermethylation in the cell lines, their expression levels and methylation status in HCC and non-HCC tissues were assessed by semiquantitive RT-PCR and methylation-specific PCR. To confirm the result, the expression levels and methylation status in 16 additional HCC and non-HCC tissues were assessed. RESULTS: The promoter regions of caveolin 1 (CAV1), cysteine and glycine-rich protein 1 (CSRP1), Kruppel-like factor 6 (KLF6), myosin (light polypeptide 9) (MYL9), and transgelin (TAGLN) were highly methylated in the cell lines. CAV1 and CSRP1 were methylated in HCC more frequently than in non-HCC. KLF6, MYL9, and TAGLN were fully methylated in both HCC and non-HCC. Using additional clinical samples, downregulation of CAV1 and CSRP1 was observed in 38 and 56%, respectively, of the 16 HCC samples and aberrant methylation of CAV1 and CSRP1 was observed in 56% of HCC in both cases. CONCLUSION: CAV1 and CSRP1 were inactivated in HCC by aberrant methylation and they may serve as important biomarkers of malignancy.